Rich, thanks for the links above. Yer a good guy.
Duh, I shudda guessed immediately that the LaPlug is just another one of the “plug computers” out there; like the Pogoplug box I have. (For those reading who want a quick description of plug computers, see this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug_computer )
Like my Pogoplug, the LaPlug (being a server) cannot make all files available for playing on the WD media players; mp3 and mp4 being true media files can be played, but a container file such as an ISO cannot be played. It is a similar situation to when someone attempts to play an ISO file via the WD’s “Media servers”, because as we know, this just ain’t gonna happen, and we get a message that says there “is no media in the current folder”… (re: WD TV Live Media Player does not play ISO files from a WD network drive )
I can’t do what the poster asks about with my WD Live Plus and Pogoplug, and it can’t be done with any other WD player and a Pogoplug – or LaPlug.
That said, the following can be done:
Via the PC, I can access files on my drives attached to the Pogoplug and play them on the PC; and this includes all true media files and container files such as ISO and MKV. Since I have dedicated drives attached to the WD player, I don’t need to go to the Pogoplug for my media files, so I don’t.
Mobile devices are a bit different. As an experiment, I have placed ISO and MKV files on my plug’s drive, AND can actually play them on my iPad from the Pogoplug drive! Here’s how it’s done:
* Must have a fast wireless home network; preferably with N-5G connection, although 2.4G works pretty good, too.
* Have the free VLC player installed on one’s PC.
* The $2 app for the iPad called VLC Streamer must be installed on the iPad, and its companion program, VLC Streamer Helper has to be installed on the PC. (there is an Android version of VLC Streamer, too).
Since VLC can play ISO and MKV files directly from a drive, the VLC Streamer programs running on the iPad and PC causes VLC on the PC to begin playing whatever ISO or MKV is selected. Then, VLC Streamer streams the video output from VLC to the iPad.
This all works pretty cool, because I can easily select to play ISO and MKV files from my stash of content on the WD’s attached drives. When the PC is running VLC and the VLC Streamer Helper program on the PC, it is all very CPU intensive – the CPU on my PC maxes out at 100% usage the entire time of playing.
Now, if I want the ISO movie that’s playing on my iPad to be viewed on my TV, all I need to do is connect the (overpriced!) Apple A/V Digital Adapter to the iPad, hook an HDMI cable to the adapter, put the other end into the TV, and voila, the movie is now on the TV!
All this has been accomplished through the local home network. I have not tried this from afar on a different internet connection elsewhere, but it could possibly work, assuming the other internet connection is a fast one like mine (maybe 20 mbps or greater). If there is a problem, it is because under this condition, my home system will be UPloading the stream to the internet, and since uploads from my Comcast are set at 6 mbps I could experience heavy buffering/stalling on the iPad. Another problem might be that I cannot access VLC this way – VLC Streamer may only work on the local network. Even though I have not yet done this with VLC Streamer, I have accessed my m4v movies from home I’ve made for the iPad through the internet via other iPad apps I have (e.g. Pogoplug app). It works well when connected to a decent bandwidth wireless connection at the other end.
All a bit of a Rube Goldberg setup, but it does work.
A parting side note to Mr. Marty: So, you see, I do know more about your situation than you gave me credit for. Ya know Marty, these were your first posts here, and you did not get off to a good start with me. Next time you post/reply, be more polite, please. We are users helping users, and we all can learn from one another. Your question helped me understand more about what is going on within my own system. Thanks for the question!